New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has canceled the ING New York City Marathon that was to take place on Nov. 4.

Bloomberg drew criticism from runners, politicians and many Americans when he announced earlier this week that the race would continue, despite devastation to many parts of New York City after Hurricane Sandy.

"We would not want a cloud to hang over the race or its participants, and so we have decided to cancel it," the mayor said in a statement. "We cannot allow a controversy over an athletic event — even one as meaningful as this — to distract attention away from all the critically important work that is being done to recover from the storm and get our city back on track."

More than 40,000 runners from around the world were expected to participate in the race. This marks the first year since 1970 that the race will not occur.

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